Visualization of the Day: New York City's Wealth Gap, Mapped In 3D

In a new set of visualizations, Nickolay Lamm, the artist and researcher who made these eerie GIFs of U.S. cities underwater, is drawing attention to the extensive of wealth inequality in Manhattan.

Lamm’s inspiration came from standing atop Mt. Washington in his hometown of Pittsburgh and asking: what if you could see the inequality hidden behind the relatively even Pittsburgh skyline? Lamm explained via email why he ultimately decided to explore New York City’s wealth gap instead:

I know that, for many people, moving New York City is the start of their journey to achieve the American Dream. The American Dream suggests that if you work hard enough, you can achieve it. However, it's clear that the landscape in order to achieve that dream is not as even and equal as it appears on the surface.

View of Manhattan View from Central Park to Harlem View from Harlem View from Yankee Stadium in the Bronx View of Lower Manhattan

Using the above map of median net worth in New York City (based on 2010 Census data), Lamm created 3D bar shapes for each block. So a block where the median net worth* is $500,000 translates to a 5 centimeter bar, $112,000 to 1.12 centimeter, and so forth. Lamm then used Google Earth to make sure the bars were placed accurately on the photos.

What about other cities? Lamm says he may do Los Angeles, Chicago, Washington D.C., Miami, and or Philadelphia next.

*Correction: An earlier version of this post incorrectly referred to Lamm's visualization as a depiction of Manhattan's median income — his visualization shows median net worth.